Can't travel to the Regional or Local AT Trainings? Webinars offer a great way to participate in Infinitec's free AT training from the comfort of your school or home. Professional development credit is issued for all live webinars. All particiipants registered will recive an archived recording.

Never participated in a webinar before? Don't worry, it's pretty simple really. We've provided a couple of documents below that can help you register and get connected.

Below are the webinars currently being offered along with descriptions and the dates for each session. To register, click on the link by the date you wish to attend. We usually post the webinar schedule one semester at a time so please check back often to see the current offerings.

This session will provide a user-friendly discussion of the neurological research in ASD. This brain research will be linked to the characteristics of ASD and explain how the ASD neurology impacts an individual's interactions with the world. This practical interpretation of neurology will serve as a foundation for interventions discussed during Sessions 2 and 3.

At the end of the session, attendees will be able to: 1. Identify some of the neurological aspects of ASD 2. Relate ASD neurology to the actions and reaction of learners with ASD 3. Describe basic intervention concepts that match neurology.

We hear all the time, I just wish my student would use his or her AAC more. Well, an important tool to help a student use core words more includes teaching communication partner to use different interventions or partner skills. This session will focus on the what, why and how of modeling (aka Aided Language Stimulation), prompting, descriptive teaching and more.

This presentation will address the unstated rules of social conduct and their applicability to individuals on the autism spectrum. Known as the "hidden curriculum", these rules of social conduct are comprised of items that are not typically taught to neurotypical children and youth, but are assumed and expected knowledge. Despite not being directly taught, theses unstated rules are extremely important. Violation of hidden curriculum rules can have an adverse affect on school performance, physical well-being and how well a student/child is able to positively relate to the community and home. This session will also highlight methods of teaching unstated rules of social conduct across the age span that are applicable to home, school, and community.

At the end of the session, attendees will be able to: 1. Define the unstated rules of social conduct, known as the hidden curriculum 2. Explain the hidden curriculum's applicability to school, community, home, and work 3. Identify hidden curriculum areas and items across preschool, middle school, high school, and adulthood

Get to Work! Handheld Technology Supports and Transition to Employment By Carrie Clawson, Assistive Technology Specialist, Virginia Department of Aging and Rehabilitation Services

We all know young adults love their smartphones, but did you know that their technology can also be used to support WORK? This presentation will discuss apps and features of handheld technology that can be used for learning new job tasks, following a routine, timeliness, and work pace. Strategies for addressing employment-related social skills and/or anxiety with technology will also be reviewed. You are sure to learn something new to implement with young adults in this fast-paced webinar.

Assistive Technology (AT) has become an essential element in the education of students with dyslexia. AT helps teachers implement Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and ensure that learning materials can be accessed by all of their students, including those with language-based learning differences. This webinar will review the three principles of UDL and how dyslexia-specific AT fits into a universally designed classroom. It will also explore the main categories of AT that dyslexic students can use to reach academic success, including text-to-speech, audiobooks, dictation, word prediction, and electronic graphic organizers. Finally, the webinar will turn to common myths about assistive technology and why AT should be viewed as a legitimate learning tool.

Strategies for Providing Access to Core Based AAC Systems- Including Adaptations for Individual Students By Kelly Key, AT Coordiantor, Barrington Schools & Matt Baud, SLP, AT Coordinator, NTDSE

These energetic presenters will share a variety of ways to provide core based aac systems for your students with complex communication needs. Low tech, mid tech, and high tech examples will be shared as well as creative ways to adapt systems for students with physical needs visual impairments, and significant cognitive impairments.

How do we teach our children and young adults to take the hidden curriculum and related skills to self-discover information — this is known as critical mass. Critical mass can be thought of as spontaneous, uber generalization that happens when purposeful practice occurs. This session will explore some of the basic tenets that will allow the critical mass to occur for children and youth with ASD.

At the end of the session, attendees will be able to: 1. Define critical mass. 2. Describe purposeful practice and how it leads to critical mass. 3. Discuss how to apply the elements of purposeful practice to teaching children and young adults with ASD.

Mary Anne Ehlert President and Founder of Protected Tomorrows Inc. will tell you all you need to know about the Able Act that has been passed in Illinois. The Able Act, which amends section 529 of the IRS Code and allows for tax-free savings and investment accounts for individuals with disabilities. This is great news for the special needs families!! If you are ready to save tax-free for expenses for your loved one with a disability, without losing government benefits, then attend this seminar!!

Topics to be covered: • What is an ABLE Account? • Eligibility • Impact to other resources/government benefits • How much can you save? • What type of accounts are allowed? • How to set up your account • Qualified expenses • State of Illinois implementation • Q & A

Mary Anne Ehlert is a financial professional and sister to an individual with disabilities. She is highly regarded as a specialist in working with families of individuals with disabilities, and serves on the boards of several organizations, including: Vice-Chair, National Disability Institute in Washington D.C. and Illinois Special Olympics. She is a member of the Alliance for the Mentally Ill, ARC of Illinois, and the National Council on Aging.

The Hidden Curriculum of the Cycle of Meltdowns for Individuals with High Functioning-Autism Spectrum Disorder By Dr. Brenda Smith Myles, Assoicate Professor, Resident Scholar OCALI

The majority of learners on the spectrum experience self-regulation and sensory issues that can lead to meltdowns. This escalating sequence seems to follow a three-stage cycle: (a) rumbling, (b) rage, and (c) recovery. This sequence can be problematic as many children and youth with ASD often endure the cycle unaware that they are under stress. This session will overview the issues related to self-regulation and sensory issues — highlighting research in a practical manner and interventions that address these needs.

At the end of this session, attendees will be able to: 1. Identify self-regulation and sensory issues experienced by individuals on the spectrum. 2. Describe interventions that that address self-regulation and sensory needs. 3. Discuss the cycle of meltdowns.

Are you having difficulty providing specific evidence on how an individual who uses AAC is performing? Are you having trouble determining the next steps to continue progress? To collect valid data, it is important to understand best practices as well as utilize appropriate tools to measure progress. This presentation will begin with a review of best practices in AAC and then translate those into avenues of data collection. Data collection tools will be discussed as well as how to synthesize this information into measurable goals.

Presuming and Constructing Competence: Why it may be the most important thing you do as a Practitioner By Dr. Joanne Cafiero, Autism Specialist & National Presenter

New research with students with significant disabilities challenges practitioners to presume the cognitive and communicative competence of each and every learner. This webinar will provide the philosophical and historical context for presuming and constructing competence. Practical models easily reproducible in classrooms and therapeutic settings will be described.

iOS 11, the latest version of Apple's operating system for the iPad, further refines the user experience for diverse learners through a number of enhancements to the existing accessibility features. In this webinar, you will learn about five new features introduced in iOS 11, including Smart Invert Colors, more customizable text to speech support, a persistent Safari Reader view, and enhancements to VoiceOver and Switch Control. Other features that do not fall under "accessibility" but can be helpful to all learners will also be discussed, including the updated Notes app with Apple Pencil support for annotations, the scanning and QR code support built into the Camera and more.

The iPad is the tool available to students across NSSEO. Due to this increased accessibility, the Instructional and Assistive Technology team developed a 3-year pilot to use the iPad as a Tier One communication device. A continuum of Tier Two and Three AAC options were included to address the Complex Communication Needs of NSSEO students. Learn about our exploration into a MTSS approach for the delivery of assistive technology services. Find out how we built capacity for AT decision making at a school level, developed implementation strategies and enhanced the role of the AT Facilitator.

Many schools are now using Chromebooks as their main computing platform. The combination of the Chrome web browser and Google Apps for Education is providing a set of tools for all students to complete their schoolwork productively and efficiently. But there are also several Chrome tools that are especially helpful to students with dyslexia. This webinar will explore the built-in accessibility of Chrome OS, along with a selection of apps, extensions, and tools for Google Docs that can be added to the assistive technology tool belts of dyslexic students.